The best place / De beste plekartist Wapke Feenstrayear 2007language(s) Dutch, Englishlocation NETHERLANDS, Hardenbergregion 2 East (East)index no. 01.2.13media Book, DVDabout the media Book in which Wapke Feenstra roamed the cultural ground of the rural east in the Netherlands. The DVD (25 minutes) gives insight in 'the making of'...

about the project Wapke Feenstra visited fourteen public places in Hardenberg which the locals had nominated as the best place. She marked the places with a text cart, discussed the details with the locals, took pictures and soil samples.

The best place is about striking roots, about nestling and settling. The result, this book, gives us a view on Hardenberg from different angles: sociological (why do people live and work where they do), geological (the soil samples), historical (information on the things that happened here earlier), biological (what kind of vegetation grows in the region), agricultural (in what way the land is being used), and of course the artview (Vecht Valley).

Three farmers are spotlighted by the contribution from German artist Antje Schiffers, who painted their farmhouses in return for a video portrait. This project is part of Landleben, in which Antje Schiffers works together with Thomas Sprenger, Kunstverein Langenhagen and myvillages.org.

The best place is part of an art program of Hardenberg, a city in the rural east in the Netherlands. Part of this program is the development of the Vecht Park, part of the Vecht Valley, as centre of the city. One of the first projects realized in the Hardenberg art program is The best place. The book itself is a conceptual work of art. This view is being presented by Pietsie Feenstra in her essay about cultural heritage and conceptual art.

Babs Pol and Louise Boer followed Wapke, as assignment for a school-project, in 'the making of' De Beste Plek. They filmed Wapke during her visits of 'best places' in Hardenberg. They interviewed her during her visits and afterwards, asking her how the idea came up and how it developed. Interviews, photostills, music, Wapkes conversations with the inhabitants of Hardenberg and short interviews with Antje Schiffers on her part of the project enhance eachother in the movie. The DVD is also part of the Bibliobox.

about artist and participants Wapke Feenstra (Wjelsryp, 1959) lives and works in Rotterdam. She is a co-founder of myvillages.org. Her work explores the direct physical and mental environment by tapping into local knowledge. The best place blends in with her other projects, which she calls ‘cityscapes’. In conceptual projects she is also intrigued by sketches, photos and paintings.

Most of the works of Antje Schiffers consist of journey documentation, like the project Landleben, on which she will work until 2009. Pietsie Feenstra lives in Paris and teaches at the Sorbonne since 2002.